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26 million Americans say that they will wager on the Super Bowl this year.

That’s what the American Gaming Association predicts when it comes to betting on the big game this year. Twenty Six million bettors would be an increase of three million from last year. According to surveys conducted by the AGA, twenty three million Americans bet on the Super Bowl last year. bet

The AGA survey for 2020 revealed some surprising numbers.

First of all more than one in ten Americans is planning to bet on the Super Bowl. Only 4 million (out of 26 million) people will place their bet in a brick and mortar sportsbook. But that is a 25% increase from last year, probably due to the amount of new legal betting establishments that have opened their doors around the country in 2019.

In 2020 nearly 5 million people claim they will be betting on the game through an online or mobile platform. That includes both legal licensed sportsbooks, and illegal offshore operators. 5m is a 19 percent bump from last year in total online betting.

Offshore betting sites continue to operate with millions of US customers betting illegally throughout the year. But the AGA president is optimistic. “With 14 operational markets and another seven close behind, Americans have never before had so many opportunities to wager on the Super Bowl in a safe and legal manner, and clearly they are getting in on the action” said Bill Miller. “With increased visitation to legal sportsbooks, we are successfully drawing bettors away from the predatory illegal markets” he concluded.

Are more people betting legally or are more people betting?

The numbers indicate that more Americans than ever are going to bet on the Super Bow. However, they do not indicate anything regarding the split of these new bettors entering the market, between legal US based gaming operators, illegal offshore websites and person to person wagering (bookies, squares pools, friendly bets).

If only 5 million are intending to bet online and just 4 million will place a bet in an actual sportsbook, that leaves 17 million wagers unaccounted for. So, what these numbers might really indicate is that gambling is growing in general with all the new options for Americans to place a bet. However, betting with an independent ‘bookie’ still appears to be a very popular method.

Only the actual numbers from the Super Bowl will tell the story of if illegal bettors are really being converted in the US.

Morning Consult conducted this online survey on behalf of the American Gaming Association between Jan 21 – 22, 2020. A national sample of adults 21+ was polled. Then the data was then weighed to approximate a target sample of adults.

How to know if a betting website is legal or not?

It can be difficult to distinguish illegal offshore betting sites from legal US based sports books and casinos. The Props Network is licensed by each legal betting state in the US to promote only operators that are sanctioned for 21+ individuals to play on. Visit our online sportsbook portal now for a list of legal betting sites and casinos in each state.

Must be 21+ to bet. Gambling problem? Call 1.800.GAMBLER.